M4.4 earthquake 86 km S of Arica, Chile
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake struck 86 km S of Arica, Chile on Fri, Dec 11, 2020, 7:11 PM GMT-3 (22:11 UTC), 52 km (32 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 35 km NW of Iquique, Chile. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.4 (Mwr, regional moment), light
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2020-12-11 22:11:38 UTC
- Depth
- 51.7 km (32.1 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 19.250° S, 70.234° W
- Region
- Chile
- Felt reports
- 13
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
13 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Reverse (thrust)
- Moment magnitude
- 4.4 Mwr
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 156°, dip 76°, rake 103°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 292°, dip 18°, rake 48°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 5.0 km horizontally, 2.6 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.08
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 126°
- Stations used
- 66
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.1114 km SE of Arica, Chile · 2105 days ago · 111 km deep · 88 km away · felt by 27
- 4.481 km NE of Iquique, Chile · 2098 days ago · 98 km deep · 92 km away · felt by 14
- 4.048 km NE of Iquique, Chile · 2075 days ago · 65 km deep · 90 km away · felt by 10
- 5.235 km NW of Iquique, Chile · 2071 days ago · 59 km deep · 80 km away · felt by 54
- 3.713 km NNW of Iquique, Chile · 2064 days ago · 51 km deep · 95 km away · felt by 12
- 4.836 km ESE of Arica, Chile · 2061 days ago · 96 km deep · 74 km away · felt by 2
Before
Earthquakes todayChile earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us7000cqet. Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC.